


Nwalin Week 2020! -- NO COPS

by werpiper



Series: in the icing: Layers side stories [12]
Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, F/M, Flirting, Foxes, Gen, Genderfuck, Jewelry, M/M, Multi, Other, Polyamory, Shapeshifting, THERE ARE NO DEADLINES THERE IS ONLY LOVE
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:34:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25559650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/werpiper/pseuds/werpiper
Summary: nwalin week 2020!!chapter 1 is prompt DANGER.  m/m, set anywhere, local rating t.chapter 2 is prompt ICE.  it's post my-hobbit-retelling Layers, local rating e.  i have tagged a variety of gender boxes for it, bc there's some genderfuck in my dwarves, and one could argue about it i guess.chapter 3 is prompt TRADITION/INNOVATION.  also a Layers side; human magic for dwarves, local rating g.  (no dwalin, this chapter is all nori.)chapter 4 is prompt SOLIDARITY.  a Prohibition AU side, nori/dwalin and a bit, local rating g.(THERE ARE NO DEADLINES THERE IS ONLY LOVE.)
Relationships: Dwalin/Nori (Tolkien), Dwalin/Thorin Oakenshield
Series: in the icing: Layers side stories [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/232551
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13





	1. Danger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a tiny ficlet, set nowhere in particular, for nwalin week 2020 :)

Dwalin had given his heart once. Thorin took it and kept it, and held it still and forever. Dwalin had no regrets. But Thorin did not have use for everything that Dwalin's heart could do, and betimes Dwalin still was restless, with a kind of love he could imagine but had never yet embodied.

He saw Nori, and his body imagined that love for him. Nori saw him, looked back, and leered. His smile promised many things that weren't love, dangerous things even in the offering. 

Dwalin wouldn't walk over. He wouldn't say a word. Nothing ventured, nothing lost.

He was already there, already striking a pose, shoulders back and three-quarters profile. "Hello," he said, and he heard his own voice sounding dangerous and low, saw Nori swallow hard before he could answer.


	2. Ice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this is a post-Layers side really, although i hope it works as standalone smut and that the genderfuck can just be taken as said :)

Icicles hung sparkling from the rocky overhang at Erebor's West Gate. Nori squinted up at them, almost blinded by the brilliance of the winter sun. Dwalin was watching narrow-eyed too, but before long he seized her hand and hauled her along into the deep snow. It would have been hard going, except that Nori was smaller and Dwalin didn't seem to have any difficulty breaking a trail, even when he was sunk in up to his waist. She didn't mind following. The cold clear air was a treat after so many weeks spent inside the city, although she wouldn't risk offending another dwarf by saying so. And Dwalin's figure ahead of her improved the view.

After an hour's walk they came to the trapline. The catch was good -- eight rabbits and, to Nori's surprise, a fox. She'd have thought those too clever, but perhaps the rabbits had proved too great a lure. Dwalin managed to release the fox without being bitten. The rabbits he killed, a quick motion with both hands, and tied them by their feet to a rope to carry home. "It's cold, they'll keep," he explained. Nori nodded. She was just as glad they didn't have to do the butchering. So many people lived in Erebor now, there were always eager hands to do any kind of work, not to mention mouths to be fed. Eight rabbits were a small enough contribution, and it was only fair to let others participate in the process.

"Let's not go back yet," she suggested, and Dwalin quirked an eyebrow along with his nod. The trapline was set at the edge of a field in a pine woods, and icicles hung heavily down from the branches as well. Nori had a thought, a delightful and obscene one, and it pleased her that Dwalin was game to go along without asking for specifics.

She led him to a great old tree, so heavily laden with snow the ends of its branches almost touched the ground. She palmed an icicle as they pushed in -- she didn't really mean to hide it; that was only habit, but wouldn't it make for an interesting surprise? Close to the trunk it was nearly dark again, the ground soft with years of fallen needles, protected from the snow. She set the rope of rabbits aside, then began to methodically strip away Dwalin's clothes.

He had not changed his mode of dress since their time adventuring. Even in Erebor he still wore heavy fleece-lined boots and a long leather jerkin; for the day out he'd only put on an old warg-skin over it again. It would be easy for her to imagine that they were still wandering, that the rest of Thorin's Company were just out of sight and possibly not out of hearing. But then the occasions for such idle pleasure were rare, and she'd been more reluctant to take them; now everything was easy, and she was more eager than ever before. She got his boots off first, and caressed his feet until his toes curled. Then the warg-skin untied and folded back for a pillow, then the jerkin and shirt, then his trousers and smalls. The smalls were a little wet, and Nori couldn't suppress a grin as she folded them back to reveal Dwalin's waiting cunt.

Dwalin's mound was studded with jewels -- a treasury that would make any dwarf greedy, and Nori knew she didn't understand the significance of them by half. They felt to her like her own, though, a joy to touch with possessive fingers as Dwalin lay naked beneath her. There was nothing here she needed to steal or sell, only to cherish and enjoy. There was the diamond, huge and flawed; three beads of jet; a sapphire bright even in these shadows. Nori ducked her head to kiss them, letting her beard caress the more sensitive folds of Dwalin's heated forge below, and was rewarded by his groan and gasp, his huge hands coming to hold her shoulders. "Easy, my love," she whispered, and heard him groan.

She spent a long time kissing him, rubbing her face into the salt-metal musk of his forge, as Dwalin rocked and gasped. When he was begging, she slipped two fingers inside, rubbing and thrusting and curling; she leaned her head back one strong thigh so she could see. His eyes were half-shut, and his mouth hung open when he wasn't mouthing speech. She heard his breaths going quicker, felt his thighs start to tremble and clutch -- and with her other hand she picked up the icicle, and slid it straight inside.

Dwalin screamed and bucked hard, overwhelmed and unable to stop himself. His wet heat clenched down on Nori's fingers, and she could feel the ice melting away in her hand. She put her head down to kiss and lick again, the freezing fresh water a lovely contrast upon her tongue. Dwalin went half-limp and half-shivering. When the ice had melted away, she took out a silk handkerchief and caressed him until he was clean and quiet. Then she climbed on top -- how could he be so huge, even lying down? -- until she could look him in the eye.

"Did you like that?" she asked innocently, just to see him smile.

There was a dizzy moment as he lifted her, eyes still locked, and rolled her down onto her back. Then he was over her, naked and hot and pelted like a bear, and murmuring, "I did. I never felt anything like that before, you little sneak. That was ice, wasn't it?" And when she nodded, his grin went wider, and he said, "Take off your clothes, then, and close your eyes. I'll be just a moment." And he stood up and walked (slowly and a little unsteadily, she noticed with glee) a few steps out to the winter-laden branches, while she hastened to obey.


	3. Tradition/Innovation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> another "layers" side. one people's secret tradition is another's innovation?
> 
> much love to [Blue_Sparkle](https:Bluehttps://archiveofourown.org/users/Blue_Sparkle/) for various kinds of inspiration <3 -- but they and their work were on my mind.

One night so late in the winter it was almost spring, they saw fox tracks in the snow. That night, Eada held Nori close, and whispered in her ear about magic:

"You start it by following the tracks. You have to take very careful steps, you must touch each spot where the fox's feet were with your own -- it's best if you touch with your bare fingers, then with your feet, bearing your weight. You go as far as you can track, but no further -- you don't need to catch the fox in the den; that's not the point at all. When you are at the end, you lie down, and you drink your offering. It should be the richest stuff you have -- cream and eggs in it, or broth, or tea. Maybe wine, or spirits steeped with fox-fly mushrooms, that would work. It's best if it's still hot. So you drink it, and then you close your eyes, and when you open them you'll be a fox! It lasts until the next time you go to sleep."

Nori listened, warm in Eada's embrace, and her face went wide with wonder. Men's magics were so powerful and strange; even hearing them made her giddy. Eada kissed her open mouth, and Nori kissed her back.

The next time Nori saw fox tracks, it was autumn, so late that it was nearly winter. No snow had fallen yet, but a heavy frost covered the ground outside of Fernsworth, and while Dori was toting both the Ori and the day's porter-work, she followed the neat little prints away from the road. She lost them again at a stream, and paused there, heart pounding and wild with plans, mind full of guilt. She looked up and around, spotting wild grapes vining up the side of a tree; she picked as many as she could to take back to her family. Dori's tired face smiled at Nori's offering, and she took the baby from him, and tried to be content.

That night they slept in an innkeeper's empty stall, or at least, Dori and Ori slept. Though nursing usually knocked her out, Nori remained wide awake, the moonlight in her eyes nearly bright enough to make her squint. When midnight's soft bell had chimed she got up and picked the inn's (trivial) lock and went inside. The evening's leftovers were stacked in the kitchen, waiting for the morning to be washed. First Nori ate -- partridge and potatoes, and more than they'd had for supper -- and then she found a clean cup and filled it. Eggs -- yesterday's but none the worse for it, and the same for cream, and both whisky and wine. If the inn stocked steeped spirits, Nori didn't know about it, but she hoped this offering would be enough.

She walked outside with the moon still high. She was tired, perhaps more so by her late-night snack, but thoughts of foxes and her love gave her strides length and energy. It wasn't far back to the road, and it didn't take her long to find the same tracks by moonlight, though they were blurred by the passage of time and others' ways. She followed them again as far as the stream.

She could cross, she supposed? It looked like the fox had. But Eada's words didn't say how hard you had to try to find "the end" -- the fox's den, or its death, for all that Nori knew. But the tracks certainly stopped here, in a little curl where the fox had apparently run back and forth before braving the stream; if it had been iced over then it had melted and frozen solid again since, leaving no sign of its passing. Nori considered, and then sat herself down. The cup she'd been carrying so carefully hadn't spilled a drop. She thought of Eada alone in their great warm bed back in Ganford, and she drank.

It didn't feel like going to sleep. More like coming awake, though she did tumble forwards, catching herself easily. She was even smaller now, heavy winter clothes falling away with a wriggle, but she felt warm, and the moonlit night was as clear as any day. She licked the rich concoction from bottom of the cup, delicious, and the more because she had stolen it! She capered and danced to the soft music of water running as ice rimed its edge. She caught a frog and ate it in a single leap and snap of her teeth. Then with her tail held high and proud, she ran back to the road, knowing she would go wherever her heart led.

She woke up in a stall, entirely buried in deep straw. Ori was cuddled to her breast, and Dori's snores resounded off the wooden half-walls, echoed by the soft sounds of livestock at rest. Outside a cock crowed, and Nori sat up. Her body felt strange, as it so often did these days. Had she dreamed of Eada, or magic? She wasn't sure, and it hurt to think about. She was naked, which went against all of Dori's rules, and her mind shied away when she tried to tell herself why. Instead she stood up and stretched, feeling strong in every sinew, before she went to their packs to find some clothes.


	4. Solidarity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: SOLIDARITY.
> 
> This is a Prohibition AU side.

Most of the garment workers were Men, but the Worker's Circle was founded by Dwarves, and anyway Lari was going to speak. So half the population of Winter Hill walked over the bridge, or caught the bus or the tram, and gathered on the Common in front of the State House. There were scores of Dwarves, or possibly hundreds -- it was hard to tell in the Mannish crowd, which numbered thousands, nearly all of whom were considerably taller.

Nori found that last bit damned annoying. In other circumstances, he'd have taken out his frustration at being eye level with so many pockets by picking them. But he was with Dwalin, and while he was not entirely sure of the larger Dwarf's attitude to that particular kind of crime, the big lug would certainly be a tremendous inconvenience as regards making a quick and subtle getaway with the goods. So they held hands, and listened to voices distorted by megaphones, and joined in on the chants and songs and cheering. It was a beautiful spring day, and Nori supposed it was for a good cause.

Dwalin was not entirely fooled. He was tall enough that he must have been able to catch a glimpse of the podium, because he was paying pretty good attention to the speakers. Maybe it was Nori's fingers twisting in frustration where they held hands, but eventually he turned and looked down at his companion. Nori felt truculent but tried to look tough: they were there to make a show of solidarity; their presence had a purpose. Dwalin's gave him a little twisted smile. "You want to see better?"

Nori frowned. It hardly seemed possible to push anywhere in this crowd, and they'd have to be right up front to get away from the looming Men. Perhaps they could break into a building and look down from a window, but that seemed risky, and anyway massing the crowd was supposed to matter? Dwalin seemed to be waiting for an answer, and after a moment, Nori gave him an uncertain nod.

Dwalin's smile back was quick and broad, and he lifted Nori right up off the ground. Quick and smooth as anything, Nori was five feet up in the air, Dwalin's head stuck between his legs, riding his shoulders like Dwalin was a pony. It took Nori a moment to settle -- he was so _high_ it was almost dizzying, and he didn't want to pull on Dwalin's hair or knock off his hat. But then he was so _comfortable_ , with the spring breeze in his face in his face, and yes, he could _see_.

It truly was a sight. Thousands of bodies indeed, massed together; he felt their strength and imagined armies. There were brightly-painted signs saying FAIR WAGES FOR FAIR WORK and THE RIGHT TO ORGANIZE ON JOB! and LINCOLN FREED THE SLAVES. There were even Elves, notably tall and many of them hatless, their hair shining brightly in the sun. Off to their right, he spotted another familiar Dwarf's face, also unusually high -- Dwalin's young cousin Fili, looking as lionlike as ever with his short golden beard. Nori could just make out his young sweetheart (Marc? Em? They'd been introduced more than once, but Nori couldn't quite keep that one straight in his mind) standing beneath, face drawn with some effort but set as he balanced Fili on his shoulders. Nori was impressed by that one's devotion, anyway, even while he himself delighted in Dwalin's easy strength.

And another familiar face -- dark with darker curls shot through with gray, bearded face regal -- was stepping up on the podium. The whole crowd hushed as Lari lifted the megaphone, and Nori leaned forward to listen.


End file.
